


Rare Bit of Magic (a George Weasley Fanfiction)

by WeasleysWizardWriter



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst, Slow Burn, Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, Wizarding Culture (Harry Potter), Wizarding Wars (Harry Potter)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-17
Updated: 2020-12-10
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:22:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27598855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WeasleysWizardWriter/pseuds/WeasleysWizardWriter
Summary: After graduating from Ilvermorny, Darcy decided to intern abroad at the Ministry of Magic. Unfortunately, during her time at the ministry, the Minister of Magic is killed as death eaters take over the ministry. Unable to escape back to America and known by ministry officials to be a muggleborn American, Darcy is forced into hiding. During what was meant to be a quick supply run, Darcy is nearly caught by a couple death eaters and her path intertwines with George Weasley, accidentally revealing a rare bit of magic neither of them knew they had been living with all this time.
Relationships: George Weasley/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 12





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!  
> I hope you enjoy this George Weasley fanfiction! I don't have much to say about this first chapter, but I will try to include trigger warnings if needed throughout the book and post any other important notes at the beginning of each chapter. This chapter has a bit of violence in it, as I suspect many of the chapters will, so if that bothers you, this may not be the story for you.  
> Now cozy up, and enjoy as you read about one of my personal favorite characters: George Weasley!

George stared out the front window, looking at all the dark storefronts. The wind whipped through broken shop windows, blowing dust across the floors of the abandoned shops. Fred and George had managed to keep the shop afloat for much longer than the neighboring shops, but it wouldn’t be long before Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes would close its doors as well. The shop thrived last year mostly from a sheer will to find happiness during these dark times, but as soon as the minister of magic died, those brave (or stupid) enough to leave their homes for anything but the essentials quickly disappeared. Everyone these days is either on the run or harbored at home. Mostly the twins just kept the shop open to ship out survival kit orders.

George reminisced of the shop’s grand opening, just before the start of term last year. He could practically see it, the shop brimming with laughing Hogwarts students, watching Hermione and Ginny browse the love potions, teasing Ron over the price of their products, and smiling as first year students excitedly flit around the shop. It had been Fred and George’s dream to open this shop for years now, and the grand opening had been a day to remember, even if the shop opened during the decline of the once bustling Diagon Alley. Shaking his head, the image cleared from his mind and he turned to work on packaging some survival kits. They had been packing up port keys, dittany, Peruvian darkness powder, and other survival-related items and either discreetly owling them to customers or hiding them in hidden locations for their customers to retrieve. It wasn’t much, but they had to do something to help

“ _No one will come in the shop anyway; I’m probably safe to work in the back and keep an ear out for the bell while I wait for close_ ” he thought to himself, turning towards the back workshop. No sooner had the thought entered his mind than the familiar tinkle of the bell sounded through the empty shop. The warm chime of the front bell was juxtaposed by the urgent sound of running footsteps and heavy breathing. Rather alarmed, George whipped back around.

“Please, can I hide here?!” breathed a short, dark-haired girl rather frantically. He could see the concern in her deep brown eyes, watching it ripple into her scrunched eyebrows. Her stance was a strong one though, like she was ready to fight at a moment’s notice. The crack in her exterior flickered away and her eyes hardened, turning almost black to match her hair.

“Look, I’ll fight the death eaters in the middle of your shop if you want, but I would rather not if that’s okay with you. You have about five seconds to decide though before they find me”, her tone was harsh, but he could hear something else, hidden beneath the surface that resembled fear. It was hidden deep, stuffed beneath the surface, but it was there, nonetheless.

George snapped out of his daze. He hadn’t seen an actual person in the shop beside Fred in weeks, so her presence had taken him by surprise. Verity wasn’t even coming in anymore. The twins tried to pay her a small sum on the side, but they didn’t want her risking her safety to come into the shop anymore, especially with the distinct lack in customers to serve

“Y-Yes, sorry, under here” he gestured towards the counter. There were shelves beneath the counter, mostly full of extra products and packaging, but there was a small human-sized open space directly under the till.

“Cave inimicum, protego totalum, muffliato” George whispered hurriedly, his wand hidden under the counter, as he could already see Yaxley and Dolohov just outside the shop.

“How can I help you?” he asked as nonchalantly as he could muster, shifting from his leaning position on the counter to walk towards them, casually adjusting a joke box on a nearby shelf on his way, “perhaps I could interest you gentlemen in some Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder?”

Yaxley only glared at George, “We need to search your shop”

“Be my guest” George gestured dramatically, adding a little bow. He was relieved to know that he and Fred kept all the survival packs in a magically concealed compartment below the stone floor in the shop. Without the disabling charm, the death eaters wouldn’t be able to get to the supplies, even if they tried pulling at the stone that the supplies lay just beneath. However, he was less pleased as he watched the death eaters begin to tear merchandise from the shelves, destroying galleons worth of product, and demolishing the workspace in the back in a matter of seconds. George grimaced, hearing a shelf crash to the ground in the back, but tried to remain calm, still standing in the front of the store, a few feet from where the girl sat concealed from view. They returned from the workshop, Yaxley stopping just inches from George’s face,

“You’re in luck, we didn’t find what we were looking for this time” he growled menacingly.

He began to turn to go, but stopped, turning back around slowly, “Unless,” a frightening sneer spread across his lips, “you’d like to tell us something”

“What would you like to know boys? Want a couple facts on our decoy detonators, or were you more in the mood for a joke today?” George knew he was on thin ice, but humor was the norm for him. It would seem weirder if he didn’t tease them. Right?

“I was thinking something a bit more helpful” Yaxley snarled, emphasizing the last word. His wand was now pointed squarely at George, “Crucio”

George’s body crumpled to the floor, writhing in pain. He knew crucio was bad in theory, had watched Mad Eye demonstrate the unforgivable curse on a spider in his sixth year, but this… this was unbearable. He felt every nerve in his body come alive, screaming with pain, burning his skin and sinking straight to his core. He couldn’t help but to scream, his body flinching uncontrollably. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to concentrate on dulling the pain. It was important that he kept the girl hidden. It didn’t matter how much they hurt him, he was loyal. He was brave. He was strong. And there was something about this girl, he couldn’t explain it, but he had to know more about her.

He turned his head towards where she sat, and imagined making eye contact with her. Almost immediately felt the air shift around him, as if a sort of force had surrounded his body. It was as if the air around him was somehow thicker than before, small amounts of the curse failing to filter through the thickness. The twitching subsided a bit. He could still clearly feel the pain wracking his body, but he could resist it a bit more now.

“Where is she?!” Dolohov yelled as Yaxley focused on the curse.

“Who? Your – aghhh! Your girlfriend?” George managed to get out, feeling another wave of pain raking his body.

“The girl! The dark haired one. We know she was here! Don’t lie to us boy”

“Nope, no girl here” George said, hoping his weak attempt at a lie would work, “I’m pretty single, unfortunately” he joked.

He felt the force around him shift again, the air hardening. He could breathe a bit easier now and he didn’t feel like his heart would explode out of his chest anymore.

“No illegal products hidden here either? Nothing that would connect you to Harry Potter?” Dolohov continued, clearly not enjoying his jokes.

“Nothing of the sort, wouldn’t dream of it” George could tell that he should’ve felt a stronger stream of pain from Yaxley’s wand, judging by the look that covered Yaxley’s face, but the force around him was blocking so much of the curse now that all he felt now was a dull ache in his bones. Knowing he had to act the part, George let out another scream, and writhed on the floor for their enjoyment. He looked up at the death eaters above him hesitantly, hoping that they bought his performance. Yaxley lowered his wand.

“Fine” he growled “We’ll be watching you Weasley. We may not have been able to prove anything today, but we’ll catch you in a lie eventually. Just you wait”

George stayed on the floor until he watched the door close behind them, still recovering a bit from the curse, propping himself up on his elbows to watch their figures fade down the alleyway and then disapparate. He looked towards the till, waving his wand to reveal the girl hiding there. There she sat in the corner, knees tucked into her chest, eyes hardened in anger at the death eaters. As soon as he removed the charms, she stood quickly, brushing off her black jeans, offering a hand to pull him up from the floor.

“Bastards” she muttered.

He took her hand gratefully, trying to look as strong as he could as he stood, his legs still shaking a bit. As soon as his fingers met hers, he felt a small shockwave roll throughout his body. It felt at first, rather similar to flying too close to one of his and Fred’s fireworks, but faded into a rather comforting wave that calmed the stirring in his legs, removing the last lingering effects of the curse.

“ _This girl must really be getting to me_ ” he thought as he looked from his hand to the gorgeous girl standing in front of him. He allowed his eyes to scan her for a moment, taking her the dark denim and maroon flannel clad body, trying his best not to let his eyes linger too long on her figure. His eyes drifting up to her face, noting the chain of a gold necklace, tucked beneath her shirt before meeting her eyes. They were mesmerizing. He felt his soul sinking into the depth of their darkness as he admired how a few pieces of her dark, chin length hair framed her face, refusing to stay tucked behind her ears with the rest. She had an intensity about her. He knew he should be a bit afraid from the way her eyes bored into his soul now, but he had seen the fear in them when she first ran into his shop. He had noted the kindness in her gesture to help him up just moments before. There was depth to this girl. She was dark, for sure, but it was a complex darkness. And he was intoxicated by it.

“ _I’ve been staring too long_ ” he thought to himself, as he watched her brush herself once more, a bit awkwardly, turning slightly towards the door “ _say something George, anything_ ”

“Want something to eat after all that?” he said, grimacing slightly “ _Mate, is that the best you can do?_ ”

“I really gotta go, I shouldn’t be here at all, really” she said hurriedly, already halfway across the shop. The awkwardness from moments before completely gone, determination filling her now. It was if he kept catching her dropping her guard for a moment, but only a moment, before she remembered she was supposed to be tough.

“Wait”, he said, succeeding in getting her to stop and face him again, “You’re American”

She raised her eyebrows, “Yeah…is that a problem?” Her tone was sarcastic, but he could hear the fear underneath.

“No, I just – well I didn’t notice before” George said, a bit sheepishly.

“Well, I still have to go” she said, turning again. George was a bit disappointed. She was the type of girl he wanted to get to know. He wanted to ask her all sorts of questions, know her deepest secrets, figure out what had just happened between them when their hands touched, but she was already leaving.

Just then, she paused. He could almost hear the internal fight in her mind as she decided whether to stay for a moment longer. She turned back towards him and tugged her necklace out from beneath her shirt, revealing a deep purple gemstone at the end of the long golden chain. She quickly waved her wand, duplicating the necklace. With another flick, the necklace morphed into a sleek watch, with a dark leather band, gold rim and purple clockface. She thrust the watch towards him.

“Here, as a thank you. I really didn’t mean to get you cursed like that. I wish I could say how thankful I am, but I REALLY can’t stay” she said hurriedly, finality in her tone this time. And with that, she turned, rushed out the door, and began running away from the shop towards the muggle side of London.

George watched as long as he possibly could, mesmerized by the vision of her black converse hitting the pavement as she ran down the alley. Watching her already tiny feet grow smaller and smaller in the distance.

He sighed and looked down at the watch still held in his hand. It was quite beautiful, but he really didn’t need a present as a thank you. He would’ve helped her regardless. He would’ve helped anyone that had run into his shop. It had always been a place meant as a refuge from the darkness surrounding it, although, he never quite imagined it to be used quite that literally as a safe haven. He did have to admit though, there was something different about her.

“ _She’s just a girl, she’s just a girl. You don’t even know her. Get yourself together mate_ ” he thought to himself, but he didn’t really believe it. She was different. He didn’t really know why, but something in him felt connected to her. As if she had left with a piece of him.

He slipped the watch on his wrist and looked around his shop. There would be a lot of cleaning up to do, but he couldn’t bring himself to start it now. He flicked his wand, locking the door and closing the shop for the day, climbing the stairs in the back to the apartment he shared with his twin. Fred was out delivering survival kits, so the apartment was quiet and a bit dark, as the sun was beginning to set. Although, it always felt a bit dark these days, no matter the time of day.  
George slumped himself on the couch in their small sitting room, glancing down at the watch again, trying not to let himself daydream about her too much. Just as he was attempting to get his mind to focus on anything but the image of the girl, he heard a quiet voice. He whipped his head around, quickly scanning his apartment for the death eaters that must have made the noise, but he was still alone.

“Thank goodness you were there” he heard the voice again. He looked at his watch quizzically.

“ _It couldn’t be_ ” he thought, raising the watch to his ear. He felt a bit foolish.

“I’m sorry I hurt you” This time he was sure it was coming from the watch, as he heard the familiar American accent. Her voice was a lot gentler now, “Thank you”

“My pleasure” he whispered back. It was probably all in his imagination, but just to be safe, he had to reply.

“Who you talking to mate?” Fred said as he sauntered from their kitchen into the sitting room, having just apparated back into their apartment.

“Oh, uh, no one. Bad news about the shop though” George said as he began to recap the events of the day.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Lovelies!  
> This chapter will be focus on Darcy's side of the story. While this whole book is written in third-person, the chapters will alternate between focusing on Darcy and George and their thoughts, observations and more. Most of the time, we will only see an event from one character's point of view, but as this is the first moment that George and Darcy meet, I thought it was important to show her side as well. However, I promise there is a lot extra background in this chapter that wasn't in the last.
> 
> Trigger Warning: This chapter has mention of abuse.
> 
> Now cozy up, grab your favorite snack and a warm beverage and let's jump right in!

Darcy walked briskly through the streets of London, keeping her head towards the ground, watching her beat up black converse move quickly along the pavement. Her heartbeat and heavy breath were loud in her ears. She had been hiding out in the countryside as long as possible with just the supplies she had, but was quickly running out of food. Before Scrimgeour had been killed, she had taken to carrying a small pack that fit conveniently under her clothing with her to work. Even carrying everything she thought might be helpful in the undetectably extended bag, she didn’t have nearly as much as she needed. A 19-year-old living in London straight out of Ilvermorny didn’t have much extra money with which to buy camping supplies, but she stretched it as far as she could.

Darcy had probably put off this supply trip too long, but every time she thought about coming back to the city and risking being seen, she sent herself into a panic.

“ _Just a quick trip. In and out_ ” she told herself, walking briskly along the busy street, but this was far from reassuring and she felt herself quickening her pace even more.

She lifted her head a bit, eyeing a grocery store a few yards away, when she realized exactly what part of London she had apparated to. She hadn’t done it intentionally, only thinking of London generally when she left her last camp site, but she had apparated near Diagon Alley.

“ _Too risky, there are probably dozens of wizards milling about here right now. Turn around. Go the other way. No that would look even more suspicious, you’ll stand out. Just get your groceries and go_ ” But as she willed herself towards the grocery store, she felt a tug towards Diagon Alley. She couldn’t quite explain it, but something was drawing her in the direction of the familiar strip of shops. It almost hurt as she tried to will herself away from the entrance to the wizarding side of London.

Her mind drifted to images of Diagon Alley the past year. She used to get lunch with Alice, her best friend from her ministry internship, once a week at the Leaky Cauldron, then walk the length of the alley to get a bit of exercise and window shop before returning to work. Of course, she hadn’t really seen Diagon Alley in its prime. Most of the shops sat dark and empty, but even then, there was something homey and familiar about the wizard haven. She used to love seeing Hogwarts students leaving Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes, jabbering to their friends about the latest trick product they had managed to get their hands on. It was exactly the kind of shop she would have love during her time at Ilvermorny, though she wouldn’t have admitted it at the time. She had never once been caught for a prank or breaking school rules, careful to avoid any reason for a note to be sent home to her parents, but she couldn’t resist a good prank when the opportunity arose. The excitement of the Hogwarts students visiting the prank shop always go her through the day, in a very dark ministry office, overrun with issues from the dark Lord’s return.

Of course, it was her own idea to work at the ministry, but she had hoped to make a bit of difference in what had become a rather corrupt government office, learn more about wizarding law, and ultimately get as far away from home as possible. She supposed she had succeeded in the latter two, but most of her day was spent doing clerical work, since the ministry was so overwhelmed that the full time ministry employees had no time to do their own paperwork, shuffling it off to the interns, while they focused on the larger issues at hand. But that had all been before the death eaters attacked the ministry and killed the minister of magic. As soon as that happened, she had taken off to the woods, leaving London far behind. That was, until today.

Thoughts still swimming with images of her time at the ministry, Darcy felt her feet turn into Diagon Alley before she really knew what she was doing. As she did though, she felt eyes on the back of her head. She turned and made eye contact with a death eater who she recognized from the ministry.

“ _Shit_. _Yaxley._ _He recognizes me. He knows I’m a muggleborn. Worse than that, he knows I’m an American muggleborn. Run_ ”

She ran down the now very empty alley. The only remaining shop was a very deserted, but still open, Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes. She willed her body to get to the bright red door fast enough, a tear escaping her eyes as she careened down the cobblestones as fast as she possibly could. Running in the door, she breathlessly yelled at one of the twins for help. Truly, she had no idea which one it was, but she knew it was either Fred or George. Having gone to Ilvermorny, she didn’t really know all the British wizards her age, but Alice had told her about a few of the wizards she knew from school. During one of their lunches, Alice had reminisced about the twins’ antics, recounting the fireworks display during the OWLS the previous year. Darcy had nearly spit pea soup across the table at that story, imagining Umbridge’s face. It didn’t matter much now who she was talking to though, she just needed a place to hide.

“Look, I’ll fight the death eaters in the middle of your shop if you want, but I would rather not if that’s okay with you. You have about five seconds to decide though before they find me” Darcy didn’t mean to be so harsh. She knew she sounded like a bitch, but right now, she knew that this boy and a few seconds were the only things standing between her and death. Plus, she lashed out at people when she was afraid, but was too stubborn to truly admit it to herself.

Moments later, she found herself shoved in a corner beneath the counter. She hadn’t really registered what was happening around her after she snapped at…one of the Weasley twins, but she was hidden, and now Yaxley and Dolohov were in the shop. She watched in horror as they tore apart the shop, smashing vials of product on the floor, tipping over displays and ripping apart packages. She didn’t mean to drag him and his shop into this. She didn’t even mean to end up here. She was supposed to be grocery shopping right now, not hiding for her life in the last shop left in Diagon Alley. She mentally scolded herself, before returning her attention to the scene unfolding before her. It was important that she keep sharp in case they found her or tried to kill him. While she had asked for his help, she wasn’t about to let him get killed trying to protect her. There was something about him that she liked, though, she didn’t really have a reason why. They had barely spoken to each other.

She could see Yaxley coming back now, Dolohov close behind.

“ _Maybe they’ll leave_ ” she thought hopefully, knowing in her heart that it wouldn’t be that easy.

“You’re in luck, we didn’t find what we were looking for this time…Unless… you’d like to tell us something”

“What would you like to know boys? Want a couple facts on our decoy detonators, or were you more in the mood for a joke today?”

Darcy giggled, slapping a hand over her mouth before she remembered that they couldn’t hear her right now.

“I was thinking something a bit more helpful”

“ _Oh no, I know that look_ ”

“Crucio!”

She watched, paralyzed, as the twin’s body hit the floor. Her heart shattered watching him writhe in pain, a blood curdling scream leaving his once smiling mouth. Suddenly, she wasn’t sitting in the shop anymore, her mind transporting her to her childhood home.

_“Darcy Eleanor Carlisle, you listen to me now and you listen good! Magic is not real! Witches and wizards are not real! You are not a witch and you are NOT going to that school!”_

_“But it says here…”_

_“That’s the end of this conversation Darcy” she could hear the warning tone in his voice, see the glint of rage in his eyes. But unfortunately, her father’s stubbornness had been passed on to her too._

_“But I AM a witch Dad. I am. You can’t yell the magic out of me. You can’t. You-“_

_Before she had gotten the chance to finish her thought, she felt his hand hit her face, the pain stinging her cheeks. She lifted her hand to feel where she had just been hit, but before she could do so, he kicked her left leg, her body falling out from under her, her hands too slow to keep her head from hitting the hard tile floor, leaving a small gash on her forehead. He landed another kick into her stomach, knocking the air from her lungs, leaving her body screaming for air, her ears still ringing from her fall. She felt so small. The rage she had just moments before disappeared, replaced by pure fear. She lay there, in the corner of their kitchen, trying to hold back the tears, looking up at her father’s menacing face._

_“This is the end of this conversation Darcy. I won’t say it again”_

_With that, something within her snapped. Suddenly, all the lights in the kitchen exploded, the glass from the light fixtures shattering in every direction. A piece of glass sliced across her father’s cheek, and she watched as he touched his face, looking at his now bloody fingers. He looked back down at her, seeing the clean circle where the glass had fallen around her, leaving her unscathed. She was never quite sure why he let her go to Ilvermonry after that, but she suspected that it had something to do with fear._

She looked back at the twin. She knew what he was feeling all too well. He can’t suffer for her. She made eye contact with him as he lay there, flinching in pain on the floor and felt another tug deep within her. The same tug that brought her into the alley. She felt herself extending towards him. She wasn’t casting a spell. This was no magic she knew, but somehow, she knew she was shielding him from some of the pain. What was happening?

“Where is she?!”

“Who? Your – aghhh! Your girlfriend?”

“ _How does he manage to keep joking while being tortured?_ ” She did admit, as shocking as his joking was right now, it did make her feel a bit better. A bit lighter. Maybe she _was_ protecting. Maybe he wasn’t in too much pain. Or maybe it was all in her head, but she hoped it wasn’t.

“The girl! The dark haired one. We know she was here! Don’t lie to us boy”

“Nope, no girl here. I’m pretty single, unfortunately”

Darcy felt herself smile a little. She hadn’t really been thinking about him that way until just this moment, but as he equated her to a girlfriend, she couldn’t help but to imagine it. For the first time since she had gotten to London, she let herself relax a little bit as she took in his features. His eyes were warm. Actually, all of him felt quite warm. From his fiery hair, to the bright colors he wore, he emanated hominess. Seeing him stretched out across the floor, she realized how tall and lanky he was, limbs spread out on the stone. But his lean figure was not to be mistaken with weakness. She could see his biceps flexing as the curse ran through his body. She wondered for a moment if he had played quidditch at school, before he let out another disturbing scream. Shit, the curse. She met his eyes again, a tear escaping her before she stubbornly wiped it away. She felt the tug within her strengthening now. Her magic was being pulled towards him more and more. She saw something in his eyes relax. Did she imagine that?

“No illegal products hidden here either? Nothing that would connect you to Harry Potter?”

“Nothing of the sort, wouldn’t dream of it”

Darcy watched him writhe on the floor again and winced. She suspected he might be faking it now, but it didn’t stop her feeling guilty at his sacrifice for her protection. She was truly shocked he hadn’t given her up the moment Yaxley began torturing him. He didn’t know her. He didn’t know her name. He didn’t even really know why she was hiding.

“Fine, we’ll be watching you Weasley. We may not have been able to prove anything today, but we’ll catch you in a lie eventually. Just you wait” Darcy sighed in relief as the redhead was finally able to relax and heard the footsteps of the death eaters retreating back into the street. She felt her heartbeat returning to normal. She could barely process what had just happened, what this boy had just done to protect her, how close she had come to potential death. She was so thankful to this boy, and she didn’t even know which twin he was. She shook her head, as if to shake the thoughts free. She didn’t have time to think about him, or even learn his name. She probably would never see him again. She just needed to survive. No time for feelings.

Once he lifted the protective charms, she stood up quickly, brushing the remainder of her distracting feelings off with a bit of dust on her dark jeans, reverting back to the hardened exterior she had gotten so used to.

“Bastards” she muttered, lowering her hand to help him up. She felt a bit light as their hands met, but it was probably just from standing up so fast. She quickly disregarded this feeling and looked up to see him standing a bit dumfounded in front of her.

“Want something to eat after all that?”

Truthfully, she was starving. She had been rationing her food for weeks, but she couldn’t afford to spend another minute in London right now. She brushed her jeans again awkwardly, before quickly turning him down.

“I really gotta go, I shouldn’t be here at all, really” It was true. She wasn’t meant to be in Diagon Alley, if she had just listened to her head over the damned tug, she wouldn’t be in this mess. She shouldn’t be here. She turned and began to walk away.

“Wait” she turned, a bit annoyed at the delay, “You’re American”

Darcy had to keep herself from laughing. He noticed now?

“Yeah” she said sarcastically, then hesitated. Maybe he would regret helping her now, “Is that a problem?”

“No, I just – well I didn’t notice before” He sounded a bit embarrassed. But it didn’t matter. All that mattered was getting out of here.

“Well, I still have to go” she turned again, almost running towards the door, but the tone of her voice rang in her ears. She pictured his kind eyes, his warmth, and her steps faltered.

“ _Don’t be such a bitch Darce. He did save your life_ ”

She didn’t have time to explain, or really to say a proper thank you, but she could give him a gift as thanks. She had barely anything on her. Not even enough money to buy everything she needed on her supply run. Then it dawned on her: the necklace. She lifted the necklace that she kept constantly hidden beneath her black t-shirt, where it would stay safe. She quickly duplicated it and transfigured it into a watch for him. The necklace was too precious to give away, plus she figured he didn’t have much use for a necklace, but this would do.

“Here, as a thank you. I really didn’t mean to get you cursed like that. I wish I could say how thankful I am, but I REALLY can’t stay” She grimaced at the harshness of her words even now as she tried to thank him, practically shoving the watch into his hands, but she really did have to go. It wasn’t safe for her here. It wasn’t even safe enough for her to get supplies now. She would have to return to London tomorrow.

With that, Darcy ran out of his shop and down the alley. She didn’t really know why she was running. She could’ve easily apparated right away, but something about running made her feel a bit more at ease as she fled, shaking off the emotional encounter. Once she was far enough away to feel relaxed, she quickly spun and apparated, landing in a quiet forest. This would have to be enough for tonight. Thanks to her stupidity, she had no food to eat for dinner.

Once her campsite was set up and protected by a few charms, she relaxed a bit and allowed herself to reflect on the events of the day. She pulled her necklace from her shirt, turning the purple stone over and over in her hands, remembering how she had gotten the necklace in the first place.

_The summer after her sixth year, Darcy had had enough of her parents’ abuse. They were never going to accept her magical abilities, so it was time to move on. Darcy didn’t even bother to come home from school that summer. She didn’t make it far though, landing a summer job working on a farm a few miles from her parents’ house. She had heard about the Drexel family farm before, and as soon as she saw that sign on the edge of their property, she knew this was the place for her._

_Mrs. Drexel was the only one home when she knocked on the door to the little white cottage adjacent to their farm._

_“Can I help you dear?” she asked sweetly, stirring a bowl of batter on her hip as she spoke. She had a glint in her eye that exuded motherly love and warmth._

_“Um, I saw the sign about a job here?” Darcy said, pointing a thumb over her shoulder to gesture towards the sign, “I don’t have much farm experience, but I’m a hard worker and I’ll work as many hours as you want”_

_“Why don’t you come in. The boys are all out getting some gear for the summer so it’s just me home right now. My husband will want to talk to you, but I imagine I could do a bit of an interview now if you don’t mind me making some biscuits while we talk”_

_Darcy nodded, eyes mostly facing the floor as she shuffled in the door. The kitchen was painted a bright yellow color, warm sunlight streaming in the windows above the sink. Mrs. Drexel offered Darcy a seat at the kitchen table, where she sat awkwardly, feeling rather out of place in her dark clothes amongst such a cheery kitchen._

_“Why don’t you tell me about yourself darling? How old are you? Are you in school? Have you had a job before?”_

_“Um, I’m 16 and I go to a boarding school across the country. I uh, I used to work at my dad’s factory on the edge of town when I lived with my parents, but I moved out this summer, so I’ll be needing a new job” Darcy said, trying to gloss over the details, hoping Mrs. Drexel wouldn’t notice, but no such luck. Mrs. Drexel turned towards her, raising her eyebrows._

_“Out on your own at 16? I can’t imagine my Jackson living on his own still and he’s nearly 18. Where are you living?”_

_Darcy paused, playing with the hem of her shirt, “Um…”_

_“You know what, never mind, I don’t want to know. You’ll live in our cabin for the summer. It’s not much, but you’ll have your own little place, and you won’t have to wake up quite so early for work if you already live on the property”_

_“But –“Darcy tried to protest, but she was quickly cut off._

_“No buts, it’s decided. I’ll talk to Tom about it when he gets back with the boys, but it shouldn’t be an issue. Now would you be a dear and grab a pan from that cabinet for me? My hands are all dough covered”_

_Darcy paused; a bit shocked. No adult outside of Ilvermorny had ever treated her this well. Nonetheless, after helping Mrs. Drexel finish the biscuits, two sweaty teenaged boys, Jackson and Seth, and their father Tom, came tromping into the kitchen, tracking dirt in with their heavy boots. A quick whispered conversation later, and Tom was driving Darcy to pick up her things from the abandoned warehouse she had been sleeping in for the last week._

_The summer passed quite peacefully. Truthfully, it was probably the most relaxing time of Darcy’s life, despite the hard farm labor. Jackson taught her most of the basic farming techniques within the first week, and she caught on pretty quickly. It was hard work, but it was quiet and uncomplicated, a welcome relief from her home life. She spent her days working with the boys, ate dinner with the Drexel family (per Mrs. Drexel’s request), and spent the evenings reading and rereading all of her wizarding textbooks. Just to look at Darcy you wouldn’t think she was the type of girl to care about school, but truthfully, she was quite intelligent, and spent practically all her free time reading. Plus, reading the wizarding books made her feel like she was back at Ilvermorny, even when stuck at home. Reading was an escape. Although this summer was much better than most, Darcy still longed for her life in the wizarding world. She felt incomplete without the familiar comfort of magic._

_By the end of the summer, she had grown quite close to the Drexel family, but she knew she wouldn’t be coming back after she finished her final year at Ilvermorny. With any luck, she would be far, far away from here, but she would be sad to never see this kind little family and their peaceful farm ever again. She said a tearful goodbye to the family, standing in their gravel drive, her suitcases stacked around her feet. Mrs. Drexel wrapped her in a tight hug, the first and only time she would ever hug Darcy._

_“Take care of yourself” she said, pulling away from Darcy, but still touching her shoulders lightly, looking at her meaningfully, as if the eye contact would ensure that Darcy would take her seriously. Her eyes softened, and she let her arms drop from Darcy’s shoulders, reaching around her neck. She removed her own necklace._

_“Turn around for me, dear”_

_Darcy paused, but eventually did as the kind woman said._

_“This necklace has been my little piece of magic for a while now. I’ve always felt like it has protected me over the years. You’ve always seemed to have a bit of magic about you. It only feels right that you should have it”_

_Darcy’s eyes watered. This woman wasn’t her mother, hadn’t even known her 6 months, and she was already much more accepting than Darcy’s own parents. She wiped the tears away quickly and turned back to face the mother-figure._

_“Are you sure?”_

_“Never been more sure” she said, nodding._

Clutching the necklace to her chest now, Darcy felt as if her most prized possession had truly protected her today. Maybe the Weasley twin would get a bit of protection from the watch she had given him. His warm eyes flashed in her mind again, and she found herself saying aloud:

“Thank you. Thank goodness you were there. I’m sorry I hurt you. Thank you”

“My pleasure” came a reply. She nearly jumped out of her skin. Had he heard her? Did he really just answer her? She quickly looked around her surroundings in the forest. No, no one was there.

“Who you talking to mate?” This time she knew for sure it was coming from the necklace. The voice sounded almost the same, but not quite. It must be the other twin.

“Hello?” she tried to speak directly into the necklace. She waited, but there was no reply. Had she imagined it?

The next morning, Darcy stood in the forest, her things securely packed away, wand in hand, preparing to apparate.

“ _Okay, you can do this. Concentrate. Muggle London. As far from Diagon Alley as possible. Concentrate_ ”

Darcy spun, trying her best to concentrate on the spell, but mid spin, the image of the empty streets of Diagon Alley and the contrast of the bright Weasley shop surrounded back dark empty storefronts flashed through her mind. She felt a sharp pain as she spun. It felt as if her body was being split in two. Darcy screamed in sheer pain, and then the world went black.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Lovelies!
> 
> I probably should have said this when I wrote the first chapter, but quick disclaimed: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter world or characters. I only own rights to my own original characters and additional storyline. Furthermore, while I am grateful to J.K. Rowling for creating this magical world, I do not support her transphobic views. 
> 
> Also, thank you all for your patience as I wrote this chapter. I've been busy with applying to grad school, moving things home for Thanksgiving and celebrating the holiday with my family. However, I am very pleased to share this chapter with you. I hope you love it as much as I do! I will try to get the next chapter out very soon. I am about to get started with it right now!
> 
> Now, grab a hot beverage, and enjoy (I am about to brew some blackberry and sage tea)!

_George_

Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes was filled with the sound of whistling as Fred and George cleaned up their shop. The twins had decided that it was too risky to keep the shop open anymore after George’s torturing. The death eaters already suspected the shop was supporting Harry Potter and this last incident gave them all the more reason to target the shop and the rest of the Weasley family. While George had to admit that the cruciatus curse had been oddly bearable for him, he didn’t want to risk a second round of torture, and the thought of his twin being tortured instead was simply unacceptable. George shuddered to himself at the thought, as he continued sweeping up the broken glass from the shop floor. They planned to spend the next day or two cleaning up and clearing out as best they could to prepare for the temporary closing. Admittedly, someone would probably find a way to break in and destroy it further, but it felt wrong to just leave the piles of destroyed product behind. Plus, they wanted to salvage as much as they could to continue sending out products by mail order from their Aunt Muriel’s backroom.

“Forge, do you reckon we can salvage this trick wand?” Fred bellowed, holding up the rather mangled product from the backroom.

“Maybe Gred, but I don’t know if it’s worth it right now to be honest, mate. We’ve got our hands full just trying to get out the mail orders after this” George hollered back, as Fred had already ducked back into the workshop before listening to the response.

“Right, I’ll just toss it then. You ready for lunch yet?” Fred yelled back.

As soon as the words left Fred’s mouth, he heard a loud thump from the other room.

“Georgie?!”

No reply. Fred ran out to the front hurriedly. Something was wrong. George was laying on the floor, arms spread eagle, broom still laying next to him where it dropped as he fell. Fred ran to his side, shaking his limp body.

“Georgie! Mate! You can’t scare me like this! What’s going on?! George! Wake up!”

Flashes of the torture George had described ran through Fred’s mind. Was this some kind of after effect? This didn’t make sense. George had been just fine a minute ago. There were no death eaters here torturing him right now, and George was the picture of health.

Suddenly, George shot upright, gasping and clutching his chest.

“What the hell was that?!” Fred asked angrily, quickly wiping a stray tear from his face before George could tease him about it. If this was a joke, it was a bloody cold one.

“I – I don’t know. I was just sweeping, and I felt this pain all over my body. Like I was being ripped in two. The pain was blinding mate. I guess I just passed out for a moment”

“Well you bloody scared me! Don’t you dare do that again!” George knew Fred was just scared, but he hadn’t heard Fred yell at him like this in years.

George nodded but as he did, his mind went blank again. At first it was just dark, and then he saw the outside of one of the vacant shops down the street. The image flashed again, and he saw the girl from yesterday strewn across the floor, cuts marking her body, blood pouring out across the floor.

George blinked, “She’s hurt”

“What? Where’d you go just now? Who’s hurt? What the bloody hell is going on?”

“The girl from yesterday. I think she’s in one of the shops down the alley and she’s bleeding out. Come on” George said hurriedly, yanking Fred with him as he stood up and began to run out the door.

“How do you know? Did you see something? George talk to me!” Fred was angry now. This didn’t make sense. It felt wrong. What if this was like Harry’s vision of Sirius in the ministry?

“I just know. I’m positive. She’s hurt bad Freddie! We have to help her!”

Something in George’s voice told Fred that he wouldn’t let it go no matter what he said, so he figured it was better to let himself get yanked along than to let his twin go into a dangerous situation alone. George was pulling him into the door of a shop now. Fred pulled his wand out. He had to be prepared, even if his twin wasn’t. But as he did so, he saw her. He was right, a petite, dark-haired girl lay across the floor in the exact same position George had just been in. Cuts littered her body. There was one down the length of her collar bone, behind her ear, across her cheek, and a couple on various parts of her arms that he could see. But blood was pooling near her right shoulder blade and there was a large crimson stain forming on her grey t-shirt. They both stopped in their tracks. George had seen her cuts in his mind, but somehow seeing it in person made it so much worse. He froze for a moment before the adrenaline took over and he knelt down next to her body.

“Freddie! Get as much dittany from the shop as you can! And some towels from the apartment! Quickly! We need to stop the bleeding! This is the worst splinch I’ve ever seen”

He didn’t make eye contact as he said it. He was already taking off his shirt, tearing it into pieces and wrapping it around various cuts on her arms to stop the bleeding as best as he could for now. Fred ran back out of the abandoned shop, and George began to turn his attention towards her other wounds. He didn’t want to move her to look at the one on her shoulder blade yet, but the one on her abdomen looked pretty bad.

“ _Is it wrong to lift her shirt? This feels wrong…No, she’s unconscious and bleeding to death, you don’t have an option. You’re being stupid”_

He lifted the bottom corner of her shirt, revealing the deepest of her cuts about an inch above her hip bone. George sucked in a breath between his teeth. It hurt just to look at the cut. He closed his eyes, collecting himself for a moment, and then got back to work. She had a small bag across her stomach that was blocking some of the cut. He unclasped the buckle and slid it out from under her, trying as best he could not to hurt her. He opened the bag and just as he expected, found her luggage packed neatly away with an undetectable extension charm.

“Accio shirt”

A t-shirt shot from the bag into his hands and he immediately pressed it to her side. _Hopefully it’s not a shirt she likes too much._ This would have to do until Fred got back with the dittany.

It felt like an eternity, but soon Fred was back, clutching a few small bottles of dittany, a few towels tossed across his shoulder. He tossed a bottle quickly to George who swiftly caught it, his old beater instincts jumping into action. He quickly emptied the whole first bottle onto her side, the deep cut needing more dittany than the rest of her cuts would.

“Towel” he said, not looking up but reaching his arm over to Fred.

He wrapped the towel around her body, tying it in a knot on one side. Fred now knelt on the other side of the girl’s body, holding her up as George tried to tend to the cut on her shoulder blade. He applied some of the dittany there and some on her upper arm and collar bone cuts, wrapping another towel around the whole upper part of her body, binding her one arm to her side, tying the other side of the towel next to her other arm. Fred was now tending to her other more minor arm scars as George used the remaining dittany on her cheek and behind her ear. Once they had properly covered her cuts in the liquid and bound her body to keep the bleeding down as best they could, the twins stopped and looked at her body, then each other.

“What now Georgie?”

“I guess we take her back to the apartment? We bloody well can’t apparate with her now, but we’ve mostly just done a patch job, she’ll need more help”

Fred could see the look of concern rippling through George’s eyebrows. Now that the adrenaline had worn down a bit, his hands were shaking at his sides. Fred would have to be the strong one now. His twin was too worried about this strange girl to focus.

“We’ll take her by floo to Aunt Muriel’s. Mum and Dad are already there. Mum’ll know what to do. She’s always been a good healer, having to deal with our mischief and all. It’s still risky, but it’s the best option we’ve got right now”

Fred still felt weird about trusting this girl. His twin had been tortured for her after all, but George seemed pretty adamant about helping her, so he would go along with it. Above all, he was a good brother. He could fight this girl later if she turned out to be a death eater, but he refused to start a fight with his twin now, especially not with how shaken up he looked.

George nodded in agreement, gently scooping up her delicate frame in his arms. He flinched at how breakable she seemed right now. He felt as if she might fracture at the slightest movement. He couldn’t explain why, but he felt a weird connection to her. He knew almost nothing about her, and yet, he felt as if he had known her his whole life. She was special. He knew it. But he could never explain right it if he tried. Fred would never understand it. Fred understood a lot about how George thought, but this was different. This was personal. Individual.

The twins rushed back down the street towards the shop. George was just going through the motions at this point, dissociating as re-entered the shop and climbed the stairs to their shared apartment. They went immediately to the fireplace, shouted their destination, and with a flash of green and a sickening swirl, they stood in Aunt Muriel’s living room, George still clutching the bleeding and unconscious girl tight in his arms.

“Merlin’s beard boy! What filth have you brought into my living room?!” Aunt Muriel shrieked from the couch in front of them.

“I- ” George started. Too in shock at this point to form a coherent sentence.

Fred glanced at his twin from the side, realized what was happening and took over.

“We found her in a shop down the street from ours. She’s badly splinched. We put some dittany on her wounds but neither of us has ever been much good at healing. Where’s mum?”

“I’m not running a home for lost causes boy! I let your family and stay here. I let the Order hide out here, but I have to draw the line somewhere. No more strays”

“Muriel, respectfully, we don’t care. Where’s mum?” George shot back, suddenly breaking out of his dissociative trance to fight for the girl who he felt rather protective over.

Both Aunt Muriel and Fred looked rather shocked, but Muriel pointed up the stairs silently, anger obvious behind her eyes.

“Mum? Dad? Where are you?” he shouted, his long legs already carrying him halfway up the stairs.

“George?” came Mrs. Weasley’s confused reply “I thought you weren’t coming until tomorr- oh dear”

“We found her down the street from our shop. She needs help Mum, please” George was breaking down, tears pooling in his eyes, his voice breaking a bit at the end.

“Right then, take her in the bedroom and then run and get your father from the study. I’ll get her healed up. Where’s Fred? Is he with you too?”

“Downstairs”

“You and Fred grab something to eat from the kitchen while I work. And clean yourself up while you’re at it” she said, glancing at his shirtless and now bloodstained torso.

“But- don’t you want help? I could – ”

“You’ve done very well so far, but I think you better take a break dear” Mrs. Weasley said, touching his face lightly before bustling back to the bedroom to tend to the girl.

George got his father and then trudged down the stairs, head facing the floor, watching his now blood-stained shoes hit each step. He hadn’t realized it until this moment, but the whole event had worn him out quite a bit. He felt both defeated and relieved to be told to leave the girl’s side for a moment. He wasn’t a boy anymore, hadn’t been for a while if he was being honest, with the war and all, and he didn’t want to be treated like one. But yet, the break for food was a welcome one.

As George stepped into the kitchen, the smell of tea wafted towards him. Fred already had set out tea and some sandwiches for them to share.

“Thought you might want to eat after…” Fred drifted off, glancing towards the table.

“Thanks Freddie” George said, sitting down in front of one of the plates, taking a small bite of the sandwich.

Fred sat across from him at the table, “So do you want to tell me what just happened?” he asked hesitantly, keeping his eyes on his food so as to avoid the glare he was expecting from his twin.

“I suppose that’s fair” George responded thoughtfully, surprising Fred a bit with his response, “Not sure where to start though”

“Start wherever you like. I usually do a pretty good job keeping up with your rambling” Fred teased.

“I don’t know if I can explain it in words. I don’t even think I understand it”

“Give it a shot”

“Well, I told you last night about what happened in the shop… the cruciatus curse, Yaxley and Dolohov, protecting her, the pain not being nearly as bad as I expected”

Fred nodded. His twin’s thoughts were disjointed, but he understood, remembered the details of the story from the day before.

“Well… I may have left out a few details”

Fred raised an eyebrow, but stayed silent, waiting for his twin to continue.

“The cruciatus curse. It was like she was taking the pain away from me. I don’t have any proof I suppose, but it was really bad at first. Felt like my bones were breaking and rebreaking over and over again. Like hot pokers were prodding every bit of skin. Like…” George paused for a moment, his eyes glazed over with the thought of the pain, “It was horrible. But then – then it was like as soon as I opened my eyes to look at where I knew she was sitting, the pain suddenly got more bearable. And the more they threatened me and asked about her, the more I didn’t give in, the more I looked at her, the less it hurt. It doesn’t make any sense. We learned all about the unforgiveable curses in Moody’s class, and I’ve never read or heard about a spell that does that. But somehow I know that’s what happened”

George took a thoughtful bite, looking at his twin cautiously to see how Fred was taking it so far. His eyes were blank, and most people wouldn’t have been able to interpret his expression, but George had spent enough time with his other half to know that look was promising. A bit more confident now, George continued,

“Anyway, um, besides that, I just had this really strong feeling when she walked into the shop. Like…” he knew the words he wanted to say, but was afraid to say them, “Like she belonged there. Like I knew her somehow even though we had never met. Like I had been waiting for her to come for years. Like this moment would be important”

Fred’s eyebrows were furrowed now. A bit skeptical, but not totally closed off to the idea. Not yet. He was waiting for more of an explanation. George took another bite of his sandwich and a deep breath to prepare himself to continue.

“You know how it felt when we finally bought the shop? We had been moving towards that moment for so long. Knew it would happen eventually. We were never destined for some high-class career, were always going to do something like that. Like our whole life led us to buying that shop. You remember how it felt when it finally happened? Just… right?”

Fred nodded.

“That’s what it felt like. It just felt right. That she was there. That I was the one protecting her”

“So, what, like, love at first sight?” Fred questioned tentatively, trying hard not to offend his twin.

“Um, no, not really. I wouldn’t say I love her. She just felt familiar. Weirdly familiar. I really wish she would’ve stayed longer. I had so many questions for her. Like what happened with the curse? But also, I was hoping she would be able to tell me why I felt like we had met before. I think I would remember if I had met an American girl that was that pretty” George blushed a bit, “Wish I could’ve gotten her name too”

“So like Deja vu then?”

“S’pose” George shrugged, “But… there’s more… You remember I told you about the watch? How she turned the necklace into a watch before she left?”

Fred nodded again, trying to understand where his brother was coming from, but was admittedly a bit confused.

“She, um, she talked to me through it”

Fred almost choked on his tea, “She what?”

“Right before you came in yesterday, she thanked me for helping her. Remember you asked me if I was talking to someone? It was ‘cause she was talking to me through the watch. I wasn’t sure at first, but when she spoke the second time, I knew it was coming through the watch. Dunno if she heard me answer her or not. Kinda thought I might’ve imagined it. Didn’t wanna tell you in case you thought I’d lost it, but I s’pose you already think I have”

Fred’s eyes were wide, but all he said was, “And today?”

“When I passed out, I felt this really searing pain in my whole body. I didn’t know why, but I didn’t have time to think about it before I went unconscious. Then, when I woke up, I had this vision of her bleeding in the abandoned shop. I guess it could’ve been imagined but felt so real and with the pain I felt just moments before, it felt like a call for help. I don’t know. None of it makes sense”

“You’re right it doesn’t” Fred paused, “But I believe you… You were laying in the exact same position as she was when you passed out.”

George sighed; a weight lifted off his chest with his twin’s approval.

“I really need her to be okay. I… I care about her? I – I don’t know. But I want to find out what’s going on. Get to know her…” his voice drifted off and he took a sip of his tea, hoping it would provide at least a little comfort. He knew it was irrational for him to care about someone he barely knew, but he had always been a lover, a caretaker (that is, when he wasn’t plotting pranks with Fred).

“She’ll be okay Georgie. You’ll get your chance to know her. Mum’s taking care of her now” Fred said, patting George on the back lightly, “Why don’t you take a nap mate? I’ll let you know if she wakes up before you”

“No, I won’t be able to sleep, but you go ahead, I’ll just sit with her until she wakes up”

Fred thought about arguing for a moment but knowing everything George had just said and the look in his eyes, Fred knew there was nothing he could say that would talk him out of it.

“At least clean off the blood and brew some more tea mate”

George nodded, finishing the last of the cup Fred had made him, “Thanks Freddie”

A fresh brewed cup of tea in hand, clean of blood and a new t-shirt on, George climbed the stairs. The door to the guest room was closed, but he went in anyway.

“George Fabian Weasley I told you to go eat with your brother” Molly Weasley whisper yelled at her son.

“I did, but I – I need to stay with her”

Molly opened her mouth to fight back, then thought better of it, seeing the slight tremble in his lip as he said it.

“Oh alright, but you’ll make yourself useful if you’re going to be in here. Hand me that roll of gauze there. You and your brothers have been getting into trouble so long, I got used to caring all this around with me,” she said gesturing at the table of medical supplies, “Lucky I did or she would be a lot worse off”

***

George could see the sunlight peaking through the gaps in the curtains. He glanced down at the watch she had given him just the day before. 7 a.m. He’d been up for nearly 24 hours now, and he was exhausted, but he had to see her eyes open. Had to know she was okay. Know that he’d have a chance to get to know her. He turned to pour what had to be his tenth cup of tea from the kettle, but there was none left. He sighed, clunking the kettle down, letting out his exhaustion, frustration, and anxiety with the movement. Then, he thought better of it and traipsed downstairs to brew another kettle.

When he returned to the guest room, he glanced at the bed with sleepy eyes to check if she had woken up yet but was shocked to find the bed completely empty. He whipped around the room quickly, looking for where she might’ve gone, but dropped the kettle of hot tea on the ground. As he did so, he burned his shins a bit, and drew in a sharp breath at the pain, leaping away from the hot tea. It was in that moment of distraction that he felt the tip of a wand against his neck.

“Where am I?”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Lovelies!
> 
> I hope you're not annoyed with me for taking so long to update! I'm a perfectionist at heart, and I wanted the chapter to be just perfect for all you lovely readers. Also, finals are kicking my butt! Hopefully I'll update more after next week when my semester ends. But, without further due, settle in for what I think is my favorite chapter yet! Also, please let me know what you're thinking so far! Grab your favorite snack and beverage, and enjoy!

_Darcy_

Darcy’s eyes fluttered open to see a very unfamiliar room. She shot upright, feeling a shooting pain in her side. Her skin was burning in multiple places, but she shoved the pain down.

“ _Where the hell am I? Have I been kidnapped by a death eater? Why haven’t they killed me yet? Maybe I’ve been tortured, that must be where the pain is coming from”_

She heard a creak on the stairs and knew she better hurry or she would be caught again when they came back in the room. There was a chest of drawers in the corner, but there was a bit of a gap next to the wall that would allow her enough space to crouch next to it so they wouldn’t see her when they first walked in the door. She scampered across the room, trying not to think about the pain.

“ _Shit my wand! Where’s my wand?!_ ” There was an abandoned wand laying on the table next to the bed. It wasn’t hers, but it would do. Grabbing the wand quickly, she ran back across the room and hid. She watched as a tall ginger figure entered the room. He saw the empty bed and dropped the tea kettle he was holding at his feet, burning himself.

“ _That’s my chance_ ”

She rushed forward and jabbed the wand into his throat.

“Where am I?” she practically yelled, hoping the threatening tone disguised her fear.

“I –” he tried to turn his face to look at her, but she just jabbed the wand further into his throat.

“Answer me!”

“Alright, alright! We’re at my Aunt Muriel’s”

“Why?!”

“You were splinched quite badly in a shop near mine. Fred and I found you and tried to help you but Mum’s much better at healing, so we brought you here! We’re not trying to hurt you I swear!”

As she relaxed, it all came rushing back to her, trying to apparate to muggle London and ending up in Diagon Alley. She’d splinched. The redhead in front of her was the same one who had helped her hide from death eaters. She glanced down at his wrist. He was wearing the watch, the same watch she had given him just yesterday. So it was George that had protected her yesterday. It was good to know which twin it was now. Was that yesterday? How long had she been out? The pain started to settle in now as the adrenaline wore off.

“I – I’m sorry. I thought – ”, her legs were giving out beneath her. She tried to will herself to keep standing, “I thought you were a death eater” blackness was clouding her vision now and she managed to whisper out another “I’m sorry” before passing out again.

***

Darcy woke again to the smell of a proper English breakfast wafting up from downstairs. It smelled wonderful, but the thought of opening her eyes and having to talk to George again filled her with dread. She had embarrassed herself quite a bit, trying to fight someone who was only trying to help her, then passing out from the strain of it. She had put on quite a show. But her stomach was longing for some food. She willed her eyes open. He was sitting in the chair next to her bed, sipping on some tea and reading the Daily Prophet. She cleared her throat, and he lowered the paper a bit to look at her.

“Mooorning. Not gonna threaten me this time?” he joked, setting the paper all the way down now.

Her cheeks colored a bit, “Not this time”

“Didn’t mean to scare you bringing you here”

“You didn’t do anything wrong. I’ve just been on the run from death eaters so long, it didn’t seem like there could be any other explanation for this” she said, glancing down at her bandages, “I didn’t remember that I had splinched until you said something about it”

“S’alright. You were splinched pretty bad. Reckon you wouldn’t want to remember that kind of pain”

She nodded, “So you’re George then?”

“In the flesh, and you are?”

She paused, fidgeting with a strand of hair.

“I’m on your side. Not gonna hurt you. I’ve already saved your life twice. Think that’s proof enough you can trust me with your name”

“Darcy” she said hesitantly. She knew he was right, but it felt weird to trust anyone other than herself during a war. “Sorry I didn’t know which twin you were until just now” she said as an afterthought.

“Nice to meet you Darcy! I’m surprised you even knew I had a twin. I’ve never seen you before. Didn’t think you’d know who I was. Wait how DID you know which twin I was?”

“You said earlier that you and Fred brought me here. Process of elimination. I used to walk around Diagon Alley a lot during my lunch break from work. I never went into the shop, but I certainly knew about the famously mischievous Weasley twins”

George chuckled, “Yep, that’d be us. Surprised I never saw you around though. Where’d you work then?”

“I worked at the ministry before…” she drifted off. He’d know what she meant.

“But you’re American”

“Internship abroad after I graduated from Ilvermorny. Wanted to get out of America”

“Bloody bad timing coming here during a war. Why didn’t you go back?”

“Um…”

“Sorry, you don’t have to answer that. I shouldn’t pry”

“No, no, it’s okay, you did save my life twice, I can answer a couple simple questions” she said, using his own words from earlier, “MACUSA wouldn’t let me back. Didn’t want to get involved in the war. But since my parents were No-Majs, er, muggles, I couldn’t really stay out in the open either. So, I’ve been in hiding since Scrimgeour died”

George nodded. There was a bit of darkness in his eyes and she could see that he understood. He may not be muggleborn, but she could tell he had experienced his fair share of hardship from the war. He opened his mouth to speak again, but right as he did, Mrs. Weasley bustled in the room to hand George a plate of food.

“Here’s some breakfast George – Oh! She’s awake! Give her that plate and I’ll bring up another one for you” and with that she was back out the door.

George set the plate down on the table next to him, “Here, I’ll help you sit up so you can eat”

He hooked an arm around her back, and she could tell he was trying to be very careful not to touch her injured shoulder. With a gentle push, he scooped her up into a seated position, and she blushed at the gesture. It was silly, but the small contact felt significant.

“Thanks” she said sheepishly as he placed the food on her lap.

“Um, do you mind if I ask a few more questions?” he asked.

She didn’t make eye contact with him, swallowing a bite of food. She still felt weird trusting him, but she found herself nodding yes in response.

“The necklace and the watch”

Her eyes shot up from her food, wide as he finished his question.

“Did you, um, did you talk to me through them?”

“I suppose I did. I didn’t do it intentionally though. I was just kind of thanking you aloud. It gets a bit lonely camping out in the woods by myself, so sometimes I think things out loud. Plus, it felt like your actions deserved some thanks, even if I was too rushed to do it in person”

George colored a bit at this, “Wait, so you didn’t know I would be able to hear you?”

“No, not at all. I was just as shocked as you were when you replied”

“I wasn’t sure if you heard that or not”

“Yeah, but it cut out after that”

“I wonder how it works” he said mostly to himself. She watched as he stared at the watch, like it was a puzzle for him to solve, smiling at the thought of him looking at his inventions like this, but soon, she felt her eyes growing heavy with sleep again. She let them drift close as he continued fiddling with the watch

“I should let you rest again” he said suddenly. He must have noticed that she closed her eyes, “Just shout if you need anything”

She nodded, opening her eyes briefly to thank him, but she could already feel herself drifting back asleep.

***

The next morning, Darcy woke up rather early. She had been sleeping through the day for two days now, so she wasn’t surprised to have accidentally woken up at 6 a.m. Truthfully, she had always been an early riser. She sat herself up in bed and turned to face the window that overlooked the back of the house. It was still dark outside, but she could see the faint light of the sun that would soon cast its beautiful hues across the sky. She smiled to herself quietly. She loved watching the sun rise. It was valuable thinking time, not to mention quite beautiful. She let her mind drift a bit as she watched the sun float lazily into the sky. It had been an eventful past couple of days, and she hadn’t really allowed herself the time to process it all.

She liked George. He had been endlessly kind to her. Kinder than she could’ve asked for truly, saving her life not once, but twice. But it felt weird to Darcy to trust someone. She had never really had anyone in her life that she could truly trust. Her parents certainly had never earned her trust, constantly giving her reasons to fear them or hate them. And having had one daughter which they despised, they had been adamantly against having another child. Darcy wasn’t convinced they had even planned to have her in the first place. She was probably an accident, and they had certainly made her feel like one as often as possible. The magic thing had been a breaking point, no doubt, but her parents hadn’t really needed another reason to hate her, they already had plenty of reasons all on their own.

Darcy was well liked at Ilvermorny, with plenty of friends and teachers who adored her, but she had never really let them into her life. She had always been better at helping other people with their problems than she was at opening herself up. She had always been guarded. Her parents had trained her to keep her problems to herself. They were never going to listen, so it wasn’t worth bringing anything up. The habit had just never quite gone away as Darcy got older and went off to school. Her friends knew the basic facts about Darcy’s life and personality, but no more than what they needed for a decent friendship and basic daily conversation. Partially, Darcy wondered if she had distanced herself from those at Ilvermorny because she had always been planning to leave. Even as a young pre-teen, Darcy had been looking forward to the day she could get as far away from home as possible. It had been the dream to flee to another country, and that plan would be ruined if she had close friends to leave behind in America. While part of her knew she had done this intentionally, the rest of her pretended not to notice, leaving that piece of self-awareness to her subconscious.

Needless to say, Darcy had never let anyone close enough to really trust them. The closest she had gotten was the Drexels, and even then, she had her bags partially packed the whole time, just in case they suddenly decided to kick her out, and she never fully explained to them exactly what happened with her parents. It was very out of character for Darcy to trust someone enough to protect her from a death eater, but she chalked that up to necessity in the heat of the moment. It was even weirder for her to trust someone enough to sleep in their Aunt’s home, let alone for more than one night. She supposed, she didn’t have much of an option either, seeing as she was pretty beaten up after splinching, but something about it still bugged her. Why was it that this boy bothered her so much? There was something about George, something familiar, and it bothered her greatly that she could not for the life of her figure out why he was so familiar. It was unnerving. He was breaking the walls she always kept up around strangers. Normally, Darcy wouldn’t have answered her questions about the necklace, wouldn’t have told him her name, and probably would’ve tried to escape, even if it meant walking instead of apparating. But there was nothing normal about this whole situation. That Darcy knew for sure, even if she couldn’t quite put her finger on why.

Darcy gazed back out the window. The sun was part way up the sky now, coloring the air shades of peace, pink and orange, bits of purple peaking through on the edges near the treetops. As she looked back at the few trees that littered the ground behind the house, she was suddenly transported into a memory.

_Darcy sat in a large field at the edge of the Ilvermorny property, leaning against one of a cluster of trees, reading Pride and Prejudice instead of doing her Arithmancy homework. She loved learning new things about the wizarding world at Ilvermorny, but class was far more exciting than actually doing homework, and she had always had a soft spot for Pride and Prejudice. Having grown up in the non-magical world, she had the pleasure of introducing her pureblood classmates to a variety of books written by No-Majs. As she read, the cool fall breeze was so comforting that she drifted off to sleep mid-book, traveling to a far-off world in her dreams._

_She could see a crowd of redhead children of varying heights clustered around a table, then the dream flashed and they were outside playing quidditch around a house that looked as though the laws of gravity had made an exception in order to keep it standing._

_“Catch Gin!” she heard someone yell, and a streak of red hair flashed across her eyes, tossing the quaffle into the goal with ease. She noticed as she watched now that there were a few extra bodies along with the gaggle of redheads. A dark haired boy was now racing towards the other goal, as a girl with a thick head of curly hair tried hard to avoid playing as much as possible. One of the lankier redheads suddenly shot down from where he had been hovering to protect said bushy haired girl from a bludger._

_“Watch yourself Granger, I mean I’ll do my best to protect you from the bludgers, but you have to at least try to dodge them once in a while”_

_“Sorry”, she said, quickly flying away to pretend to be interested in the game for a bit._

_The scene hovered on the quidditch game for a bit, showing the joyous group of teenagers play their game until it got too dark outside to see the quaffle, then shifted back inside the topsy turvy house._

_“I do believe we’ve finally done it!” said the same lanky redhead from earlier, holding what looked like a homemade firework proudly in his hands._

_“Think we outta test it?” an identical boy sitting across from him said excitedly._

_“It’d be a crime not to I reckon” the first boy said, a hint of mischief twinkling in his eye. The two boys sprinted down the hall, rushing into a nearby bedroom._

_“You lot fancy helping us test out our new product?”_

_“Oh, please, I don’t want to ‘test’ another skiving snackbox product”_

_“No, you’ll like this one, I promise. No puking, nosebleeds, or fainting involved”_

_“Oh alright, but if you try to pull something….”_

_“Swear to Merlin” he said, hands in the air._

_Darcy watched as the group of teens quietly left the house and hiked a ways away towards a hill about a field’s length away from the house, hearing their excited discussions as they made the short walk._

_“One –“_

_“ – Two”_

_“THREE” the twins said in unison, watching the small firework shoot up into the sky with a pop, and then explode into a red W in the sky. The crowd of redheads and their friends oohed and awed at the display, each of them excitedly bombarding the twins with their questions and compliments_

_“Wicked”_

_“It’s beautiful”_

_“Can you make me some?”_

_“Is it safe to sell these?”_

_Then the scene faded and Darcy was thrust back into reality, the scene fading and giving way to her view of Ilvermorny castle from her seat beneath the tree._

Present day Darcy gasped to herself quietly. That’s why he seemed so familiar! That’s why his presence had bothered her so much! She had had recurring dreams of that particular redhead most of her life, sometimes with his family, sometimes at school, oftentimes getting in trouble for some prank, but always the same redhead. She’d had these dreams since she was a kid, even before she started school at Ilvermorny. She never really knew who he was, but she considered him to be a sort of friend. She never thought he was actually real. Never dreamed she would actually meet him. It had been almost two years since she had had one of those dreams. They went away when she came to work at the ministry, but she hadn’t really thought anything of it, too busy with work to even notice it much. But this whole time, she had been dreaming of the very boy who would one day save her life. This was too weird. She gazed back out the window again, trying to wrap her head around it all.

“Looking a bit more awake today” George said from the doorway, striding across the room with a plate of breakfast in hand.

She smiled over at him, pulled away from her thoughts, “I feel a lot stronger today. Not quite so tired”

“That’s a good sign. Glad to know Mum hasn’t lost her touch”

“Is this going to become a regular thing, you bringing me breakfast every morning?”

“Only if you want it to be” he said cheekily, winking at her.

She shook her head, laughing lightly as she took a bite of her food, trying hard not to focus too much on her recent realization.

“I caught you deep in a thought, didn’t I?”

She blushed a bit, contemplating whether or not to tell him that she used to dream about him. No, best not. He already saved her twice. He didn’t need to think she was crazy too.

“Just thinking about how pretty the sunrise is. I love sunrises. If I weren’t so weak, I would go out onto the bit of roof outside the window to watch the rest of it. Sunrises are best if you’re outside to watch them, feel the air warm around you with the sun”

He set down his plate abruptly, making her jump a bit as he stood up, and before she could think, he was scooping her up from the bed and into his arms.

“No! What – what are you doing? George?”

“You want to watch the sunrise on the roof don’t you?”

“I – well, yes”

“Then let me take you out to the roof”

Too excited by the idea to protest him carrying her, she let him take her the rest of the way. They sat next to each other, cross legged and facing the picturesque sky.

“Are we allowed to talk while we admire the sky?” he asked jokingly.

“I suppose so”

He paused for a moment, and at first, she wondered if he was waited for her to say something first, but then he said, “Did you protect me from the cruciatus curse?”

She turned her head quickly, looking at him in shock. She hadn’t been sure until this very moment that she hadn’t just imagined helping him. It took her a second to respond, too taken aback by his question to be able to find the right words to say at first, “Well, yes. You were protecting me after all. It only felt right that I should protect you as well.

“But… how did you, I mean, there’s no counter curse for the unforgivable curses”

Darcy picked at the hem of the oversized t-shirt that Mrs. Weasley had given her to wear, “I don’t really know how I did it to be honest. I just sort of, did it. I couldn’t stand to see you lying there hurting, and then all of a sudden, I kind of felt myself extending and then, it looked like you weren’t hurting quite so much. I, I don’t know. That’s the best explanation I’ve got for you”

George looked at her a bit stunned for a moment, “You – you don’t know?”

Darcy shook her head, “But what about you? How did you find me when I splinched?”

“Erm, I sort of passed out. Must’ve been when it actually happened. I felt like I was being ripped in half and then went unconscious. Fred said when he saw you, you were laying in the exact same position. Anyway, I woke up and had this vision of you, lying there bleeding in one of the abandoned shops down the street. And I just knew it was real. That’s all I know really, never really stopped to question it at the time”

“Hm, alright then, so we know pretty much nothing”

George grimaced a bit, “Well, it’s not nothing. We know we have a strange connection. We know I felt the pain when you splinched and had a vision of where you were. We know you protected me from the cruciatus curse. We know we can sometimes communicate through your necklace and my watch. We just don’t know how all of it is happening”

Darcy went silent. She closed her eyes for a minute, squeezing them shut and clenching her fists at her sides, then with a loud exhale, she unclenched her fists and opened her eyes. The whole time, George was looking at her expectantly, not sure if he should comfort her, or say something or just wait. He chose to wait.

“We know a little more than that” she knew she had to tell him, but she was scared. So scared.

“What else is there?” George asked gently.

“I –” her voice cracked. Despite her best efforts to hold the tears back, they came anyway. She had been trying so hard to stay brave, stay calm through all of this. Through going on the run. Through hiding from the death eaters in his shop. Through splinching. Through finding herself in a strange house. Even through answering George’s questions the other day. But she was so tired. She had been through so much and she had been trying hard to trust this boy, but it was pushing her farther than she was used to, and she wasn’t sure she could do it. She wasn’t sure she was strong enough. Tears were streaming down her cheeks now and sobs were wracking her body. Soon, she found strong arms wrapped tightly around her body.

“Would you mind if I did something? I think it’ll help” George whispered into her ear.

She couldn’t make any words out, but she nodded into his shoulder. Gently, he scooped her up and sat her small frame in his lap, pressing her body into his. He used his long arms to press her as close to him as possible.

“I read something in one of Hermione’s muggle books once about pressure reducing anxiety. So, I’m just gonna hold you until you feel calm again” he said gently.

As much as Darcy didn’t want to trust him, she had to admit that this was working. She curled herself smaller into her arms and tried hard to forget that this was a practical stranger holding her. After a few minutes, the tears stopped coming and she felt her breathing returning to normal. She placed a hand on his strong chest and pushed herself away from him a bit.

“I – I think I’m okay now”

Nodding, George lifted her back off of his lap, but placed her close next to him so that their legs were still touching.

“I’m sorry. I must look a bit crazy to you”

“We’re all a bit crazy with everything going on”

“I’ll remind you that you said that after I finish saying what I’m about to say”

George smiled slightly, “Trying to scare me off?”

“I hope not, but I’m afraid I might. I don’t usually open up to people like this”

“Well there’s a first for everything”

“Here goes nothing then” Darcy took a deep breath and began, “I’ll start with the smaller stuff I suppose. So the other day when I ran into your shop, I was just supposed to be getting supplies, food and stuff to use while I’m on the run, but when I apparated into London, I unintentionally apparated near Diagon Alley. When I realized it, I was just gonna walk past and go to a grocery story instead, but something inside me – I can’t explain it, but something pulled me towards Diagon Alley, like I was meant to go there. Of course, then I ran into trouble, but I also met you. Then the next day, I was going to come back to London as far away from Diagon Alley as possible, stay away from the wizarding community so that I would avoid the death eaters. But right as I was apparating, something inside me tugged at me to Diagon Alley again and changed my apparition at the last second, and I splinched badly because I was trying so hard NOT to go there. It was like… well it was like something wanted me to see you”

She looked up at George, and he was still watching her, listening intently, looking completely unphased by what she just said. Encouraged by this reaction, Darcy continued.

“I was thinking about everything that’s happened the past few days, and I couldn’t help feeling that you felt really familiar to me, but I couldn’t figure out why. But then I remembered” she paused, this was where she might really lose him, “I used to have dreams about you”

George’s eyes went wide, but she could tell that he was trying not to react too much.

“Not just one dream. I dreamed about you all through childhood until I moved here last year to work at the Ministry. All sorts of different kinds of dreams. They weren’t necessarily in order, sometimes it looked like I was seeing current day, but sometimes I saw stuff from your childhood, and sometimes I swear I saw things that hadn’t happened yet, but I couldn’t be sure. I could never see your face that clearly. Couldn’t see anyone’s face clearly now that I think of it. I could see body shapes, hair, stuff like that, but not faces really. And I rarely heard names. I didn’t know who you were. I kind of thought you weren’t real, just some figment of my imagination that I hung onto. Felt a bit childish really, like having an imaginary friend almost. So when the dreams stopped, I thought I must’ve finally outgrown them. I hadn’t had them as much as I got older anyway, just once every 3 or 4 months, but a lot when I was a kid. Could never remember much of the details after a day or two, but I always remembered you. Your voice, what your body looked like, your bright red hair. And I knew you had a twin, but that was about it. I didn’t put the pieces together until just this morning. Like I said, I haven’t had one of those dreams in quite a while, and the details are fuzzy, but it all makes a bit more sense now, why you’re so familiar. It’s because I’ve already met you, in my dreams”

Darcy had gotten so caught up retelling her story that she almost forgot that George was listening, but she looked up at him now, a bit worried that she might have really scared him off. His eyebrows were raised, and his eyes were still wide. He wasn’t saying anything. Why wasn’t he saying anything?

“So? What do you think?” she asked tentatively.

“You’re an absolute nutter” George joked, smirking.

She shoved him a bit with her leg, “No but seriously, what do you think?”

“I think you sound remarkably sane. And I think you just connected a few dots for me actually”

“Such as?”

“I think you weren’t the only one having dreams about me”

“Oh, so you were dreaming about yourself too?”

George chuckled, “No, I think I had dreams about you. Pretty much exactly how you said. I had lots of different dreams about you, but more when I was young. The details were always fuzzy, but I always knew when it was a dream with you in it versus a normal dream. They stopped about the same time yours did too”

It was Darcy’s turn to be surprised, “Really? You’re not just messing with me?”

“No, not messing with you. Can’t promise I’ll never mess with you. It’s kind of what I do, but not when it’s something serious like this”

Darcy blushed when he said this. He was planning for them to get to know each other more, for her to need to know that he was a joker, “What do you think it means?”

“I don’t know, but I think I was pretty spot on when I said we have a connection”

“What are we gonna do?”

“I don’t know that either, but I don’t think it’s anything to worry about. Certainly, I’m curious to find out what this all means, but don’t make it sound as if we’ve got to solve this problem or else we’ll die”

“You’re right, sorry, like I said, this is a lot of opening up for me”

“Stop apologizing, this is a bit new for me too”

“One day at a time then?”

George nodded, “One day at a time”


End file.
